I Walked Away And He Lost His Mind (Zephyra) novel Chapter 168

My expression flickered. “No,” I said quietly. “I don’t want him to regret it. Regret leads to entanglement. I just want us to fade from each other’s lives and never have to think about one another again.”

Besides, Steven didn’t love me. What would he possibly have to regret if I left?

Horace’s gaze was fixed on me, his handsome features serious. After a long moment, a playful smile returned to his lips.

“Zephyra, you’ve grown up.”

“Well, everyone grows up,” I said, smiling back. I poured a glass of juice and a glass of wine, handing the juice to him and keeping the wine for myself. “You’re driving, so no alcohol for you.”

Horace lowered his head and continued peeling crawfish. He looked gentle and serene, but there was an underlying sharpness to him.

“You went off the grid for a while, said you wanted to be a full-time housewife and focus on Steven. Now that you’ve decided to leave him, why aren’t you using your ‘Somania’ alias?”

“I can still get in touch with our old clients,” he continued. “You could take on freelance projects or even start your own studio. Anything would be better than your current situation. Or is it that you don’t want to be Somania anymore?”

I blinked. I had only stopped using the name so he wouldn’t see what I was up to while he was abroad and worry unnecessarily. I never imagined he’d misunderstand my reasons.

“Somania wasn’t just me; it was us. I couldn’t just use the name without your permission. Right now, I’m under contract with Myron, and the terms prevent me from using my old alias for business or even mentioning it. Once the contract is up, if you’re still interested, we could give it another shot.”

I deliberately left out the part about Steven actively searching for Somania. He wouldn’t believe it was me anyway.

Horace’s eyes lit up, and a genuine smile returned to his handsome face.

“Okay.”

We clinked our glasses. “Horace,” I said with sincere hope, “I wish you all the best in love, and I wish myself success in my plans.”

*May he find happiness with the one he loves, and may I get away from Steven and never see him again.*

Horace’s smile deepened as he met my toast. “To that.”

I tilted my head back and downed the wine in one go.

But I had forgotten that my reborn body had a much lower tolerance for alcohol. After just one glass, my head started to spin. The next morning, I woke up with a splitting headache, the sound of my phone ringing incessantly in my ears.

“Bullshit! The only person I’ve pissed off is you!” Antonia’s voice was shrill with rage, her pretty face now a swollen, bruised mess, her eyes burning with fury. “Zephyra, you’re disgusting! You don’t even have the guts to admit what you did! Well, I told Steven everything last night—all about you and Horace. I told him where you were meeting, and I even sent him the pictures I took of you two getting cozy.”

“If someone hadn't beaten me up and smashed my phone last night, I would have sent those pictures to everyone! I’d have plastered them all over the internet and ruined both of you!”

At that, my eyes turned to ice.

“Then you should be grateful you didn’t. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be screaming at me right now; you’d be in the emergency room.”

My photos could be posted anywhere, I didn’t care. But Horace would not be dragged down with me. The Lancaster family was too powerful; they would never allow such a scandal to tarnish their name.

Antonia, however, laughed with triumphant glee.

“My pictures might not have gotten out, but don’t you get too smug. Steven was furious last night. You just wait. He’s not going to let you off the hook today—”

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